A Second Chance
by pixified
Summary: Basically Chandler left after a fight he had with Monica. Now 8 years later when he decides to come back everything's changed. Monica's married with Joey and Ross hates him. Will feelings resurface again between Monica and Chandler? Not M/J, please R&R!


A Second Chance

  
**Well, I deleted the other fic "Whenever You Need Me" because it wasn't that good and it didn't get much reviews. Boohoo, :'( I hope this fanfic comes out better than the other one I wrote. Please read and review!  
  
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Friends and this story is only meant for entertainment purposes.**  
  
~  
  
8 years.  
  
It had been 8 years since Chandler left. His leaving devastated the group but they all eventually learned to move on, all but Monica. There hadn't been one day where she didn't think "What if?" and wonder how/where he is or even if he was still alive.

Monica stared intently through the balcony window as the rain drops pitter pattered across the streets of New York City. The weather suited her mood. The streets were completely drenched and umbrellas were canopies to the sidewalks. Monica felt empty inside, as if there was a big gaping hole through her that everyone can see except her. She yearned for something, somebody and she knew who it was. Chandler.

But she knew that that was impossible. Chandler would never come back and even if he did, she was married to Joey and she even had a daughter with him. She loved Joey, of course she did, but still...it was nothing compared to her relationship with Chandler.

Monica and Joey had gotten together 7 years ago, about a year after Chandler left. They were attending Ross and Rachel's wedding ceremony which made Monica broody and depressed. After Joey comforted her, Joey took her to a bar in an attempt to cheer her up and they ended up getting really drunk and sleeping together. For a month or so, they couldn't keep their hands off of each other and had kept their affair a secret. That is, until one day Rachel caught them doing it in the living room. Eventually everyone learned about their secret. Ross found out last when he saw them taking each other's clothes off through the window.

Monica had the day off from her job as head chef at Alexandra's (I think it's supposed to be Alexander's, but who cares, it's my fic) and Joey would be home soon from his mechanic job. Joey gave up on his dream as an actor right there and then when Monica conceived their daughter, Megan. Megan was 7 years old and she was extremely bright for a 2nd grader. She knew her ABC's and could count to ten when she was just 3 years old! Megan would also come home soon with Joey and then Monica would go on living a life that deep down she really didn't want to live. She wanted to live the life where she would be married to Chandler and raise Megan with him. And they could live in the suburbs with a cute little house with the white picket fence and a dog running around in the back yard. Then at night she would kiss good night to her daughter, Chandler would read a story to her, and then Chandler and Monica would sleep together in each other's arms and say they how much they love each other.

Monica giggled. Oh how she wanted that dream to come true.

"Honey, I'm home!" Joey exclaimed. Monica could hear the giggles of her daughter. She came out of the kitchen and hugged her. Then she kissed her husband on the cheek, not on the lips passionately as she would have done with Chandler. Okay, she probably wouldn't have done that in front of her daughter who was beginning to be curious about how she was created. After that, Megan went into her room to do her homework.

"So how was work?" Monica asked half-heartedly.  
"Amazing! I got to work on a Lamborghini today and the hot blonde chick that owned it paid me $5000!" Joey said excitedly.  
"Good job, honey. Wait a minute...Joey!" Monica nudged Joey a little.  
"What? So now I'm not allowed to check out people anymore?"  
"You shouldn't be, other than your wife, mister!" Monica playfully hit him.  
"You know, I like it when you order me around in that tone. It's very sexy." Joey growled.  
"Joey, I'm not in the mood for sex. But...I made your favorite meal."  
"Well, hey, hey! A meatball sub is almost as good as sex!" Joey leaped towards the kitchen.  
  
~

Chandler looked out the window over the vast seas. It was so black, so empty, just like a void. Just like how he was without Monica. He couldn't sleep knowing that he was just 6 hours away from being with her once again. He wondered why it took him 8 years just to come back. But then he remembered the fight that they had those 8 long, miserable years ago, which had caused them to break up. And being the coward that he was, he left. Just like that. He hated himself for it. For causing the love of his life pain. It broke his heart just imagining how she had reacted when she found out he had gone.

~

_"What do you mean you don't want to have a baby?" Monica screamed.  
"Honey, it's not that I don't want a baby, I just don't think that we're ready for one yet." Chandler replied calmly.  
"Chandler, how can we not be ready for one? We've been together for 3 years!"  
"Mon, we're not even married yet. We've only been engaged for 4 months."  
"Well, I don't want to wait until we're married. By the time I give birth, we'd be married already."  
"True, but...Monica, I don't want to rush into anything. I want to take things slowly, step by step."  
"So much for following your own advice, Chandler. You proposed to me, didn't you? From here, everything is pretty much all rush, rush!"  
"But we're no way near ready for a baby yet! What about our financial needs! The wedding is expensive, and we can't afford to have a baby this soon!" Chandler was beginning to get irritated. He hated it when his wife was having gigantic mood swings.  
"I see what this is about. All you care is about money, don't you? Oh, that costs too much, buy this instead. All you care is about yourself! I hate you!" Monica gasped, shocked at what she just said to her fiance._

_Chandler stared at his wife as the last few words his wife-to-be, soul mate, and best friend had just said to him slowly registered into his mind. Tears began forming in his eyes and he left, never to come back._

~

Then Chandler realized that Monica, too had caused him pain. But that didn't matter for he was going to get a second chance, a second chance at love.

~

**So? What'd you think? I hope your answer is at least good, because if it is...review!**


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